Time Flowers
by darkmoonprincess432
Summary: AU Full Summary inside Yaoi Time flowers are guarded by ANBU memebers, the last three who can access these rare flowers. They  record the secrets time holds as the Kodaina clan changes fate for the better but for a price that may be too high to pay especially if your the last 3 of your clan but with a prophecy and danger in the air; such a price must be paid.
1. The Begining of the War

_**Summary: **_

_**The Kodaina clan's symbol was the time flower, a flower that could record time to the last detail with a drop of Kodaina blood. It was cared for and grown for years and years until the clan was attacked by Konoha in spite of their service to the village and the plant disappeared. Its members scattered and changed their names to live on as normal people. They hid for years, decades, centuries. Its last pure blood member, Asuka, had hidden in the woods under the name of Umino. Upon falling in love with the White Fang, Sakumo and meeting her 'relatives' and their son; she gave up her life to save Obito Uchiha; ultimately changing fate. She revealed the prophecy that a Kodaina would change fate three times and died in her son's arms. Her DNA was tested and confirmed. She was a Kodaina. Her two children lived on with the knowledge of being the result of a disgraced clan. Aisha, the older one, was warm and bright like the sun and Kakashi, the younger, was like the moon, secretive and dark. After the Kyuubi attack, Aisha had two children of her own with Hizashi Hyūga. Furious, Hiaishi, the current heir, demanded that only a child with the Byakugan from the marriage would be raised as a ninja. If they did not, he said, they would be exterminated for tainting the Hyūga bloodline. The couple fiercely opposed the demand, pointing out that the two were already showing talent at age four and two, and stated flatly that if their children had the talent, then they would be ninja. The fights grew worse because of the rift between the main and branch families. The Hyūga affair only worsened the situation as Hizashi gave up his life for the main branch and Aisha died of illness and shock of his death afterward. Hiaishi was forced by law to take in his niece and nephew who he refused to see. He was thrilled, the maids gossiped, that the son was a mini-Hizashi but threw a fit of rage went the daughter; hiding behind her brother was blind in one eye and possessed a brown eye, not a pale white one. They also gossiped that the two were regularly beaten, the daughter for not performing Byakugan which she could not do anyways and the brother for trying to protect her. Two years of brutal treatment took its toll and the two children were thrown into the woods to die. The two were said to be dead for sure though their remains were never found. Little did the village know that their uncle found them, took care of them, and secretly adopted them through the Third Hokage directly who made them ANBU because of their talents and will to survive...and to keep their identities hidden. Only the Head Jonin Commander and a few, trusted friends knew that the last time flowers of the Kodaina Clan were still alive. Yaoi warning; rate T for minor suggestive themes and language and will go up from language and elicit sex most likely. Characters are OOC in some parts but no flags people!**_

_** Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto (cries)  
><strong>_

Five years prior to Naruto's graduation…

_When you love someone too much…you only end up more broken then when you didn't know them at all. _As an ANBU, that's what I had to believe and believed it I did. I entered the force when I was five and only given B-rank missions. My brother could so A-ranks and when we weren't working, we were training. I'm Wolf, he's Phoenix. Uncle's Hound and Mom's dead. She was dead because she fell in love with a Hyūga. Ridiculous I know with so many sayings like, 'Love knows no bounds' or 'There is only one person in the world that is made for you.' She loved Dad more than anything in the world and died from the shock of his death. Do I blame dad for doing his duty? No I shouldn't and I don't. Do I think Hiaishi should have died instead? Yes I do. Do I hate him? Yes. Do I think he did the right thing throwing us out to die? No. I'm a killer. I do my work and live in the stone cottage mom and dad left for us. Too bad everyone thinks we're dead but then again, they never want to go into the house anyways. They think it's haunted by our ghosts. Dumbasses. We fucking live there. Of course we normally stay underground but it's nicer down there. It's its own little paradise, we call it Rakuen. Down there, there is luminescent moss that gives off a greenish light and time flowers. They grow around dark pools of pure, untainted water that has saved us from dehydration many times and cleaned our wounds even more. We hardly wash; we only do it for the sake of health. We're not supposed to think but I do and I still feel pain. Hokage-sama summons me…it's a new, intelligence mission most likely using the time flowers to record information. I kneel beside him; there are two men there, Chūnin by their flak jackets.

"Iruka, Izumo, I have a mission for you," Sandaime speaks. Those are their names are they're very familiar sounding too. They both have brown hair and one has a scar across his nose. The other hides an eye behind his hair though it isn't blind like mine. Interestingly, the two seem like at least tokubetsu jonin level. Odd, they could probably beat me in a match, one on one and I'm ANBU. Curious. They look uneasily at me. They're probably wondering why an ANBU is coming with them. Good reasons, intelligent, strong, my blind eye analyzes their strengths and weaknesses rapidly. It may not see but it works like a Sharingan. It's the Jikanhaname (time flower eye) Uncle says, the dojutsu of the Kodaina clan that comes once a generation. It normally allows sight but when Hiaishi had a fight with dad, he threw a kunai at me, scarring my eye exactly like Uncle's and left me blind. It's silver with black lines coming out of it like the spikes of a wheel, the center being the pupil. Its golden hooks glow when I'm analyzing chakra (like I am now) with two on the top and one on the bottom eye like an upside down, discolored Sharingan.

"You are to collect information on Kiri, the Bloody Mission. This will be your first S-rank Wolf; I hope you don't let me down." Hokage-sama turns to me and I nod my head in assent.

"I will not, Hokage-sama," I tell him.

"Take off your mask," I blink surprised. We're never allowed to take off our masks with other ninja with the exception of the Hokage and elders.

"You will use a henge for the mission as a jonin," Hokage-sama notes my discomfort and continues, "But I believe your mother's students would like to see your face." It clicked. Of course, mom loved these two from the Umino and Kamizuki clan. The sea and the death moon.

"Yes Hokage-sama," I stand and take off the porcelain wolf mask I wear.

"Aisha-sensei?" the scarred one, Iruka croaks as Izumo looks like he'll faint from shock. I sigh inwardly; I've been called by mom's name more times then I like but with a nod from Hokage-sama I tell them my name.

"My name is Aishina, her daughter."

* * *

><p><strong><em>To the time right before Naruto runs off to save Gaara…<em>**

Neji's hair blew from underneath his mask its chestnut locks playing with the sandy wind of Suna.

"What are you doing up here?" the new Kazekage, Gaara asks the ANBU. Neji turns around and tell him, "I like the view, seeing people being people; something I was denied." Gaara nods agreeing, "I do the same thing too from time to time."

"What is it like to be free?" the question took the young Kazekage by surprise, "To be free?"

"To do what you want, when you want. Eat what you like to eat, live how you want to live," Neji asked him, "You're the former Kazekage's son, your life must me heaven compared to mine."

"It's not that glamorous," Gaara sighed, "Rules for everything and constant training so I can use Shukaku better."

"But you can see with your own eyes, the world. I have to hide them behind a mask," Neji argued.

"Don't you have a non-ANBU sibling who can see the world for you?" Gaara questioned. Neji shook his head, "My sister and uncle are ANBU too; they can't see beyond their masks either."

"That's sad." Gaara frowned. Whole families didn't normally become ANBU unless they were forced to because of circumstances but in this particular ANBU's profile, there was nothing about a family dispute. How odd.

"Phoenix," a second ANBU bounded to Neji.

"Wolf," he nodded, "Any sign of the Akatsuki?"

"Two are headed this way; they will try to take Shukaku," Aishina explained, "I've set up a barrier around the whole village but I won't be able to keep off their attacks for more than twelve hours but Hound is reinforcing it and the ninken we brought are on look out."

"Good work," Neji smiled at his sister and she smiled back though one couldn't tell. The two had a telepathic bond and only needed thought to send the other a message. It had formed at birth and was only augmented by the fact that the two had always been together through the worst and best of times.

"Are you siblings?" Gaara asked curiously as the demeanor between the two shifted into a friendlier mood instead of the normal, cold ANBU one.

"That is for our Hokage to know," Aishina told him, "Unless you order us otherwise."

"Then I order you to tell me," a hint of amusement spread over the Kazekage.

"Then yes we are oh Uncle's coming," a third figure appeared, taller and leaner but just as deadly poofed into existence.

"When will backup arrive?" Neji asked.

"Three days at least.," Kakashi replied to his nephew.

"We don't have that much time," Aishina said, "I can't keep up my chakra barrier for three days and expect to fight."

"We can take a day each," Neji suggested, "that way we'll hold out."

"That's assuming the Akatsuki don't break through first," Aishina argued.

"Wolf holds a point," Kakashi said, "they'll strike at tomorrow night at the latest, we'll need more people who can hold the barrier to reinforce it. Jonin and Chūnin should be the only ones fighting."

"Can you predict their direction with your wind affinity Wolf?" Neji asked. Aishina angled her head in several positions and nodded, "They'll be coming by air; I'll cut them off and you put the Kazekage in a safe place. I'll ask the jonin for volunteers to fight. That way we can wait for Obito and Gai's squad to get here."

"Send a ninken to inform them…Pakkun!" a pug appeared.

"Yeah boss?" the pug asked, bored.

"Tell Gai to hurry the bloody hell up or else he'll lose his 'youthful' sprit. Tell him it's a challenge from me. Oh and tell Obito he still owes me so he has to hurry with Gai or else its blackmail!" Pakkun gulped and teleported without a word. He knew very well how much blackmail Kakashi had and was not eager to learn about more of it anytime soon.

* * *

><p>"Obito-sensei! We're almost there!" newly promoted jonin, Iruka bounded forward side by side with his adopted brother, Naruto.<p>

"What's the rush Iruka-nii-san?" he asked.

"Look," Naruto saw a small pug bounding towards them.

"Pakkun!" Obito ruffled the dog's ears playfully.

"HELLO PAKKUN THE FAITHFUL LIEUTANT OF MY ETERNAL RIVAL!" Gai said loudly as Tenten shook her head.

"No time to talk, boss said to tell Gai to hurry the bloody hell up or else he'll lose his 'youthful' sprit. That is a challenge by the way. Oh and Obito boss says you still owe him so you have to hurry with Gai or else its blackmail"

"Well then let's hurry." Obito said without another word. _Kakashi…do you still love me the same way you loved Rin before she died? Why are you so worried about this mission? Is the Akatsuki involved? What about Iruka though? I know you love him like you love me. What are you going to do my love? _

_**A/n: Cliff hanger XD! I just love doing these because I'm good at it. R&R peoples! **_


	2. Escaping, Remembering

_**Comments: Sorry for the long update wait but the second chapter is here! Even though it's over 5k words (dizzy) well I had the ideas just needed to pick which ones I wanted. **_

_**Kakashi: Fine excuse dark, your learning. **_

_**Me: Shut up, I need to do the summary. **_

_**Summary: The sun has set and the night begins to bring out some things hidden underneath the minds of the people in Suna. Obito and Iruka find themselves talking about the man they love in the moonlight and find themselves interlaced perhaps by fate as they camp under the stars and moon. Meanwhile Gaara makes his escape to the backup group with Neji as his guide through the elder's pond. And Aishina, Aishina is dreaming about her past and just how many monstrous acts she had committed. **_

_**Neji: You make this sound so dramatic.**_

_**Me: Gee thanks, I try, do the disclaimer will you?**_

_**Neji: Fine. Darkmoonprincess does not own Naruto or us but she does own Aishina because she based her off of herself. She also owns the ninken mentioned in this chapter since they are not part of Kakashi's squad.**_

* * *

><p>The sun had finally begun to set in Suna. The three ANBU captains watched it fade in a comfortable silence. They never really needed spoken words. The bonds they shared were deep, so deep that they literally shared thoughts all thanks to an empathy link. All Kodaina's share such links that allow them to see into the minds of their clansmen and sometimes form similar bonds with people outside of their clan. Of course, they are last three known left but still, it was nice and very useful.<p>

"Boss," Mizume, a large, pure white dog growled out, icy blue eyes rolling back in submission, "The night watch is ready."

"Good, thank you Mizume," Aishina responded in a monotone. Her voice changer was made to hide her voice as long as she wore her mask but Mizume could tell she was grateful for his support so he bowed deeply and left.

"Shall we turn in for the night?" Neji asked.

"Not yet Phoenix," Kakashi said, "Lord Kazekage requests our presence at the dinner table tonight. We'll use a henge so we don't have to wear masks to dinner."

"I wonder why though," Aishina mused, "Did you say something to Kazekage-sama Phoenix?"

"Perhaps," Neji had to hide his smile as he remembered the Kazekage's curiosity. Kakashi smirked under his mask, "I have a feeling I know where this is going."

"Of course you do and you're one to talk about the no-masks thing Kakashi," Aishina rolled her eyes.

"You had to bring it up?" Kakashi asked.

"Yes, yes I did," Aishina Chester-Cat grinned.

"…I hate you." Kakashi mock-glared.

"Love you too oji (A/N: oji means uncle)," Aishina smiled, "Anyways, let's get ready."

Gaara paced anxiously in the dining room. He didn't know why he was so nervous but somehow meeting the three ANBU captains made him uneasy.

The one called Hound scared him. He was the quietest, the oldest and most experienced of the three but he was also the darkest, coldest, most willing to kill. His gravity-defying silver hair made him appear like a stray dog, hungry, savage, immoral in general. Gaara most certainly didn't want to meet him in a dark alley. There was a story behind him that Gaara didn't understand and feared for it was complicated and full of memories created by the wretched lives the ANBU lived.

Wolf seemed to be more human for the lack of a better term and despite the softness she had for teammates, Gaara could sense a much darker force within. She was a strange one; she always seemed to know what was going on. Her black hair turned brown and red in the sunlight and it seemed to Gaara, that she had seen things beyond what normal ANBU saw. Scars blatantly showed themselves through her armor with a strange wave-like brand on her left hand barely showing over the hand guards. Gaara wondered what sort of battles Wolf had gotten into; how violent or deadly. She was responsible for so many deaths in every village, even the other four nations could do little to stop her from defeating their best warriors. But she had done other things too. She have managed saved two Kages, the Third Hokage and the Fourth Mizukage and brought about awareness of the Akatsuki though she nearly killed herself in the process.

Phoenix was the most curious of all. He seemed kinder and more soft-spoken than his other two teammates yet he radiated authority over them. Wolf would argue but bend to his will eventually and Hound always asked for his opinion first instead of voicing his thoughts. But like his two teammates, there was something different from the within but this was a physical flaw not an emotional one like his comrades. The way the two acted, it seemed that the physically weakest was Phoenix for Wolf and Hound always made sure he was the one who was alright, stepping up to take the worst of the attacks and jobs in his stead. And he had a sense of humor too though it was marred by sadness. Something about him made Gaara insatiably curious. Phoenix had the charisma, he supposed, to bring most people around him.

The oddity of all of these personalities drove Gaara insane. ANBU weren't supposed to be so caring and so human. Yes ANBU were normal inhumane and insane. That's was your stereotypical ANBU. Then again, these ANBU were hardly stereotypical. Hound was a famous prodigy, an S-ranked Bingo-Book ninja with a fifteen million yen reward over his head. He was known for assassination, for massacring whole enemy clans without injury. Wolf's reward was even higher at twenty million yen and she was famous for her savagery. It was rumored that she had killed three of the treacherous Legendary Swordsmen of the Mist with her equally famous partner Dolphin without a scratch and that her intelligence was greater than the whole T&I department of the Hidden Leaf put together. Phoenix was right below them at 10 million yen in rewards but he was a tracker, an undercover and stealth ops ninja. He was harder to find than the Akatsuki but his work was always known.

Yes, the three were living legends and along with their favored partners, they had made quite the name for themselves. But that was of course, talk from the shinobi grapevine, the rumor mill. Which meant that these ninja were either overestimated or possibly underestimated. Gaara shuddered to think that if they were underestimated, he'd hate to see what they had done to gain such infamy.

Aishina smirked in her henged body as she picked up the Kazekage's thoughts. Peeping in people's minds wasn't nice but the amount of vent up anxiety had made her incredibly curious and so she activated her kekkai genkai. _How brutally naïve the rumor mill has become. _Aishina thought sadistically. The bounty for her head was well over twenty million because of her missions and her partner Dolphin's reward was just has high. _Dolphin…Iruka-oji._ Aishina looked resignedly at the mirror. She missed having missions with Iruka or Dolphin as he was known in the world of ANBU. He was always her preferred partner as Kakashi's partner was her Tenzo-sensei and Neji's partner was Yugao-sensei.

_It was odd really_, she thought, _that Neji always prefers to work with women and I prefer to work with men, it's strange really now that I think about it, Kakashi-oji really doesn't care…_Aishina shook her head, she really needed to dress. She had transformed into a white haired woman she called Kaze after her element. She used the henge occasionally to meet the regular jonin, chunin, and genin of Konoha. Of course, only nine out of twenty thousand of them really knew who she was. That would include (In her terms), Ibiki-sama, Kakashi-oji, Neji-nii, Yoshino-oba (A/N: oba means aunt), Yugao-sensei, Iruka-oji, Izumo-oji, Inoichi-oji, and Tenzo-sensei. Aishina had a feeling though that Raidou-san, Hana-oba and Shikaku-sama had their suspicions about her though. Back to the topic at hand. Clothes. Aishina was eternally grateful for her brother's organization which made up for her lack of thereof. She put on a simple white silk yukata with a sakura pattern on it and grabbed her silk fan painted delicately with cranes. She tied it quickly with a golden obi and henged her blind eye to appear as a seeing, bright green eye. Brushing the long white mane of hair she gained, she pulled it back in a bun and added a pair of chopsticks and two small combs with a pink lotus each. Satisfied she decided to meet up with her relatives in the hall way.

"Nice choice Kaze," Neji smiled. His cloud colored eyes was replaced with sharp amber ones and his hair was pulled back in a ponytail. He wore an ocean blue kimono with a sea green obi decorated with wave patterns.

"Thanks, you too," Aishina smiled back. She was slightly surprised Neji hadn't used a complete henge like she did but it really didn't matter so long as he didn't look like himself.

"I say I look better though," Kakashi grinned. Aishina rolled her eyes at him. He was wearing a dark green kimono with a lighter green haori tied with an earthy brown obi. He wasn't wearing his mask but his face had been henged. Neji noticed the henge looked like a combination of Obito and Iruka. Raven black hair tied near the bottom was matched with unscarred chocolate eyes as the moonlight glinted off the pale skin.

"Why Obito-oji and Iruka-oji?" Aishina asked.

"Because I want to," Kakashi raised an eyebrow, "Got a problem with it?"

"Don't lie to us oji," Neji sighed, "We know you're in love with both of them not matter how much you deny it."

"You can't fall in love with two people at the same time," Kakashi protested. Aishina blinked and rolled her eyes again, "You can oji. You love me and Neji just the same and there is two of us."

"That's not the same thing!" Kakashi nearly shouted. As much as he adored his two adopted children, they needed to stop reminding him about his personal life. He couldn't love two people, not after Rin, not after her.

"Is it really?" Aishina asked softly, "Is it really so strange that you fell in love with two people at the same time? I'm not completely blind yet and I know damn well that those two are more important to you than anything else and you're not the first person on this planet to have two lovers of kami's sake. Just…can you stop thinking it is wrong? I know homosexuality is illegal but honestly. Half the population is gay and you and I know that better than anyone else."

"You do not me," Kakashi countered.

"Still, you get the point. They both love you, you love them. Is it really that hard?" Aishina sighed, "Men are frustrating."

"Hey!" the other two protested.

"It's true. I can never get any of you to open your eyes a smidge to empathize a bit," Aishina pointed out, "You're so oblivious to hints it's crazy really."

"ANBU-sama, it's time to go," a servant bowed to the three captains.

"Hai." All three responded.

* * *

><p>Obito was staring at the fire as he lay down on his sleeping bag. They were two days away from Suna, two more days until he saw Kakashi again.<p>

"Thinking about him?" Iruka asked. Obito blushed and turned his head away.

"It's not unusual you know, falling in love with a teammate," Iruka threw more wood into the fire.

"…" Obito had no response to that. He couldn't look at Iruka in the face. He never could. Obito's heart clawed with regret. His left eye wasn't his; it was Asuka's, Iruka's sensei's mother. Aisha had trained him, Izumo, Kotesu, Hana, Itachi, Yugao, and Shisui (there were two teams, Shisui, Yugao and Itachi were the first, Iruka, Izumo, Kotesu, and Hana were second). The death of their sensei's mother shocked all seven of the tightly knit team almost as much as their sensei. Worse still was that the Uchiha clan had rebelled and taken Itachi away while Shisui escaped. Obito knew his cousin had pinned away for his best friend. It was only Yugao's and Hana's soft coaxing did he find the will to live on. Obito also knew that Iruka's parents were dead because of the Kyuubi and yet he found it in him to care for Naruto like his own son. Naruto wasn't the last, other orphans walked in and out of the man's life, becoming stronger under his guidance...

What Obito didn't want Iruka to know, was that he, one of the last loyal Uchiha, was jealous. He envied that Iruka still had all of his teammates, envied his close relationship with ANBU, the T&I department, even the Hokage herself had him as a member once. Iruka's other half, the part known as Dolphin (though being a teacher kept him safe from assassins) was so well known that Iruka couldn't go through the village without the whole block staring at him. And it wasn't his prowess as a ninja either; Iruka was one of the hottest, handsomest, cutest, people in Konoha depending on how you looked at it. Iruka was the personal friend of Wolf, one of the most feared ninja in all of the shinobi nations. Obito wasn't sure who Wolf was but he knew damn well she was stronger than Kakashi, maybe even the Hokage.

At the same time though, Obito couldn't help but help attracted to Iruka. Iruka was kind, patient and never acted bitter to him even though they were rivals for Kakashi's affection. Obito sighed. He really was a jerk to Iruka sometimes but Iruka had shrugged it off without a problem. He couldn't help it though. Ever since it became obvious that Kakashi and Rin liked each other he had pretty much given up on romance. It wasn't until Aisha had introduced her second team that contained Kotesu, Izumo, Hana, and Iruka did he find new friends. Iruka had been his friend since that day and that friendship was being ruined every day because he believed only one person could have Kakashi.

"It's alright you know Obito," Iruka looked at the Uchiha with mocha colored eyes, "It's ok if you hate me really. I wouldn't blame you if you did…" Obito looked at him in shock and before he knew it, he had pinned Iruka down on the ground.

"Don't say that!" Obito shouted at him, "I don't hate you, you're still my friend, how could I-" _Kami I'm being so corny Jiraiya-sama would be amazed on how corny I'm being. _Obito thought as he kept on shouting at Iruka for being an idiot. He had hardly registered the fact that he had Iruka in a very compromising position but Iruka noticed alright and blushed so red that even the setting sun was dim. It increased even more as Obito shouted exactly why Iruka was a good person and that he could never hate him at heart. As Aishina walked into the grand dining room, a mental image of Obito's face completely flushed a bright crimson contrasting with the silver moon and dark trees in the background flashed in her mind. Growling at Iruka mentally through their empathy link she grumbled to him, _you just noticed he's hot when he's ranting up a storm? _Iruka mentally smacked her back _shut up I can't help it. It's not helping your limbo I notice. Why are you my partner again? Because I'm awesome like that. Bastard. Love you too Dolphin. _Came the cheeky response as Aishina smiled politely at the Kazekage. Iruka meanwhile was cursing his aforementioned cheeky partner. His limbo was acting up and Aishina had the nerve to tease him about it! Ok, she did that a lot but still! Iruka was half-angry at Aishina half embarrassed by Obito. Iruka felt if the two ever met, they would be the death of him.

* * *

><p>"Lord Kazekage," Neji addressed coolly.<p>

"Gaara is fine," came the response but Gaara added, "These aren't your real faces are they?"

"No they're a henge," Kakashi replied.

"What should I call you then?" Gaara asked.

"Kaze," Aishina replied.

"Tori," Neji inclined his head slightly.

"Karuto," two mental eye rolls from his lovely niece and nephew. Really they were a great family. (A/N: I tried combining Kakashi, Iruka, and Obito into one name and got Karuto)

"Very well then, take a seat," Gaara gestured to three of the finely crafted chairs that lined the equally fancy table.

"Stylish," Aishina commented politely, "Though I prefer a table with friendly comrades rather than formal guests."

"Oh? Is that so?" Gaara sat on the head chair.

"I may not know Suna's customs well but I've always enjoyed a table of friends; politicians and elders tend to get dull after a while," Aishina smiled, "And I find talking about important matters with friends is more beneficial than talking with politicians."

"How do you know this?"

"I was the Sandaime's personal guard for years until he retired," Aishina shrugged, "Which meant of course I got stuck working with politics. It always helped to talk to Tori or Karuto here or one of my squad rather than work it out with a politician."

"That does seem more appealing," Gaara let out a small smile, "You're an interesting person Kaze."

"I'm flattered you would bother with a compliment," Aishina's eyes had a teasing light, "After all…Gaara-san, most superiors I know would rather give out orders than praise their subjects."

"I suppose that makes me an interesting person too," Gaara grinned. He liked Wolf. She seemed feisty and witty, not unlike a certain other jinchuriki. Naruto would have liked Wolf instantly.

"Hate to break into this conversation but the food's delicious and it's getting cold," Neji interjected. Not that he had anything against the Kazekage but his protective instincts were beginning to kick in.

"Hai, hai, Tori, don't be a prick," Aishina chided her brother but started to eat some pork dumplings with ginger, "Hey these are really good!"

"Kaze, dumplings and ginger is your favorite food; of course it tastes good," Kakashi rolled his eyes. Aishina glared, "Shut up; these ones are different!"

"Kaze's right," Neji was happily munching away at the dumplings, "They are really good."

"Don't eat all of them!" Aishina mock-glared at her brother; "I never get these since _**someone**_ keeps burning them!"

"If I didn't cook both of you would starve so don't get mad at me," Neji mock-glared back.

"True, true," Aishina resigned herself from the argument; but she stole a dumpling from Neji anyways. For the rest of the evening, the topic switched from the dumplings to security.

* * *

><p>"If they're coming by air, Kaze is the best way to stop them," Kakashi explained, "Unfortunately she's also the best at teleporting so Tori will have to take you instead by river."<p>

"Couldn't she use a clone?" Gaara asked.

"I could," Aishina said, "But if it's the Akatsuki we're facing I'm going to need that chakra and my form of teleporting takes quite a lot when I have other people to transfer especially since it's all the way to Konoha."

"Don't worry Kazekage-sama," Neji reassured, "Transporting you might be might be slower but it's less risky than Kaze's way."

"Oh?" Gaara was curious, "How so?" the three exchanged glances and nodded.

"This is why," Aishina dissolved into wind and reformed on the ceiling. Gaara was fairly sure if he had been a woman he would have screamed but he wasn't so he just looked shell shocked.

"Because I can become the wind its ill advised to turn other people into wind with me," Aishina grinned at Gaara's expression, "But Tori's way should keep you safe and camouflaged well."

"That's good," Gaara hoped however Tori was going to bring him to Konoha was better than becoming air. Being a land-based shinobi, air travel did not suit him at all. Temari had tried once but afterward agreed to never do it again since Gaara had passed out and nearly drowned when he fell into the irrigation canals that lead to a river far from Suna.

"Well if you agree Kazekage-sama," Kakashi continued, "You and Tori will escape tonight while Kaze fights the Akatsuki to buy you time. I'll be manning the barrier and contacting backup so they know where to find you."

"Alright then," Gaara nodded, "How will we escape?"

All three smirked, "You'll see."

"Let's go to elder's fishing pond," Neji said, "We'll explain there." Gaara was puzzled but agreed. They left the dining room, went through the candle lit corridors and arrived at the elders pond (the elders were sleeping so they wouldn't be too offended).

"Milady," a silver dog bowed, "the tunnel is ready."

"Good work Tsuki," Aishina rubbed the dog's ears affectionately, "Were the otters and beavers easy to negotiate with?"

"The beavers didn't mind since they needed the stone and mud anyways for their dam but I had to give the otters fish constantly to keep them working," Tsuki shook her head, "Well it is done now."

"Good girl," Aishina praised, "I'm sure the otters were just being mischievous as always; go rest, I'll have Shunpo and Kage take over your watch."

"Thank you milady," Tsuki bowed twice and left, stiff-legged.

"The room's been checked and sound proofed," Kakashi reported, "So it's safe enough to tell you the plan here."

"All small gadgets or clay figurines," Neji squashed one with his foot, "Are destroyed as of now,"

"Good, so now let's go over the plan," Aishina nodded in approval.

"As you know the Land of Rivers is the border between our nations," Neji explained to Gaara, "So we'll make use of that."

"Tori you see is a water-jutsu specialist," Aishina explained, "He'll put you in a sort of water cocoon and then cast a genjutsu to make it seem like you're part of the water. Tsuki, as you know, has created a tunnel large enough to fit both of you and widened the river. I've already contacted the backup party so they'll meet you in the Land of Rivers at dawn. From there you'll have to run for all your worth because the creeks in Konoha are too small for this form of transportation." Gaara considered this for a while. _It seems safe enough so long as my sand armor doesn't get wet, it'll do. _

"The water will suspend you, you won't get wet," Aishina told him right after he thought this. Unnerved, Gaara stared at her but decided against questioning. _It's useless to interrogate ANBU, they're too well trained for that __**especially**__ these ANBU. _

"Let's go then Gaara-sama," Neji had changed back into his ANBU gear, "It's nearly midnight."

"Ok," was all Gaara got to say before he was surrounded by water. _Kaze was right _he thought,_ the water suspends rather than soaks_ he found this amusing as he moved about the cocoon weightlessly. He felt himself lowered into the pond and into a dark cavern. In a moment's panic he wondered where the ANBU were but he soon got his answer. Neji (or Tori) was swimming beside him, guiding the cocoon with his chakra. Neji himself however, had turned into water. With only the moonlight to light the water, he was practically invisible but by day he could be seen. _That's why they wanted me to leave at night. _Gaara commended the ANBU a job well done though the job was not done yet.

"Get some rest Aishina," Kakashi put his hand on his niece's shoulder, "You have a busy night tomorrow."

"Thanks oji," Aishina yawned mightily, "I'll do that, will you be ok handling the barrier though?"

"I'll last," Kakashi said grimly, "The jonin will take over by day though whether their combined effort will work or not I don't know."

"They'll last too," Aishina smiled, "Their resolve will push them to the bitter end. We've fought Sand ninja before. We know they go down fighting and they'll bring someone with them if they can."

"Yes, I know," Kakashi looked at his niece, wondering if she was that same little girl he saved from Hiaishi so long ago. _She's grown up so much; I am proud. _Aishina gave him a smile, sweet as a fresh breeze and hugged him before teleporting into her room. Kakashi sighed happily but prepared himself for a long, long night.

* * *

><p>Aishina dreamed. Normally they were some sort of message from her ancestors or thoughts from her squad but this night was different. This night she went back into the past. When she woke up she did not know why she dreamed the dream she did but remembering it made her shudder and remind her that being in ANBU means you do things that are truly unforgivable to do what you think is right.<p>

* * *

><p>Her dream:<p>

_It started when she was captured by the rebellious Uchiha clan. She had managed to save the Third Hokage though she nearly died because of it. This angered the clan into pursuing her shortly after a tiring S-rank mission. To save her squad from slaughter, she separated from the group and led the Uchiha's far away from Konoha into the neutral Land of Iron. _

"Ugh," Aishina felt as if an Akimichi had been dropped on her. Her arms were sore and bruised and her right leg had been maimed again. Luckily or unluckily they hadn't removed her mask so for now they did not know who she was. At least she hoped so. Her Jikanhaname began to work again, slowly but surely. She was going to spring free when two Uchiha's came up to her. One was tall but frail looking while the other expressed hate and cruelty.

"Bring her to father," the hateful one snapped. Aishina growled at him. Even though they were her enemies, she felt this was no way to treat fellow comrades. She could tell the frail one was older and probably a lot wiser than the hateful one. Something about him caused her not to put up a fight when he removed her chains. Intrigued she allowed herself to be taken into presumably the Uchiha's meeting room.

The whole clan was there, even the children. The mood was tense. _ They're probably going to kill me. _Aishina thought grimly as she ran through all her escape plans.

"Thank you for bringing the prisoner Itachi," the man, presumably the head, did not sound grateful in the least. _Fugaku never really like Itachi,_ her father muttered angrily in her head, _he never liked your mother's students. He tried killing Iruka twice earlier if you noticed. I'm not surprised he's treating another one of your mother's students poorly though Itachi is his son. _Aishina looked curiously at the frail ninja. Images of better days with a younger Yugao and Iruka flashed. She nodded at him and he stared back, puzzled. _Save him Aishina, _her mother's voice_, save my student. He always had a gentle heart just like Neji except he's being beaten because of it. _Further analysis of Itachi confirmed this. He was badly bruised though he hadn't been a part of the chase. Anger seeped into Aishina's veins. _Why would you hurt someone so gentle and kind? I would have lost all humanity long ago if not for my brother's heart! _She shouted this mentally to no one but watched as Itachi was hit by his younger brother. The Jikanhaname whirred to life. Fragments of pain, resignation, and a scrap of hope was all Itachi felt now.

"Duel me Wolf," Fugaku's voice resounded in her ears, "Show us your power." _He's tricking you into ignoring Itachi, he knows Aishina. _Hizashi told her. _Watch_ _the swordsman over there._ Aisha's voice chimed in. Aishina stared at him. He was tall, over 6 feet and oddly blue skin. She knew he was an Akatsuki by his coat but his thoughts were…sweet. The word sounded foreign in her mind but she knew sweetness. This sweetness, she shared it with Neji. Love. She managed to define it. The swordsman loved Itachi. Intrigued, she looked deeper.

She saw a picnic lunch with a laughing Itachi before he was hit unkindly by another clan mate. She felt the anger that swordsman felt at that moment. She felt his helplessness that he couldn't do anything to change Itachi's treatment in fear the Akatsuki, allied with the Uchiha, and would cast him out. _He needs the situation to change, change it Aishina, use your gifts._ She turned her attention to Fugaku.

"I accept," and before he could response she attacked him swiftly. She heard a strangled cry from a woman as she sliced Fugaku's head off. _Use my power_, Ookami, her tailed beast, invited, to which she accepted. Silver energy blasted the hideout to smithereens. Her mask cracked but she couldn't find a reason to care at the moment as she scooped up Itachi and grabbed the swordsman by the ruff of his collar and teleported them away to her hideout.

Kisame's POV

I didn't understand why that ANBU saved me from the explosion. I had killed so many people; I was an S-class criminal. Why would he save me? I had no time to answer for I was pulled roughly into a sort of portal and was brought to a hideout. It was a stone cottage, broken at the front, and far away from anyone. The land felt like my home, Kiri. The ANBU though, was from Konoha. This I found interesting.

"God I hate this mask," the ANBU threw the said wolf mask at the floor. I could see now she was a woman, a very young woman with a strange silver eye.

"Oh, you're awake," she said, "You're one of the first to not throw up during teleportation. For some reason I have a habit of making people throw up after I transport them." I blinked. The girl had a sense of humor. That was rare for an ANBU. I wanted to ask who she was but a different question sprung from my throat.

"Why did you save me?" she looked at me, head tilted. She cracked a smile and nodded, "I can trust you. I saved you because of Itachi." That name jolted me into a new question, "Is he alive?"

"Do you think I'm completely heartless?" she asked, "Of course he's alive. He's the reason I blew the place up." I stared at her blankly for a while. She hummed a lullaby to Itachi who was shivering on the only bed. She threw her coat and more blankets over him and left an herbal tea by his bedside. The rain started to fall. She closed her eyes and stared out the window, talking to no one.

"Thirty dead," a tear fell, "7 men, 14 women, 9 children." More tears.

"I didn't want the children dead," she stared out the window sorrowfully, voice breaking "I don't want any child dead."

"You didn't have a choice," I argued, "You wanted to get out, they were just caught in the crossfire."

"Perhaps they were," she said, "But perhaps I could have controlled that explosion better." She let out a heavy sigh. "But I can't undo the past no matter how strong I become. I don't know if it was right to take their lives for Itachi...but I have and not even the gods can change it. Still, each time I kill a child I feel my heart growing colder and colder; I only hope it will not turn into ice though like that hateful one."

"You mean Sasuke?" she looked at me as if she just realized I was there and nodded slowly, "Yes, that was his name".

"Tell me why you save Itachi and why can you trust me," I demanded and strangely a broad smile lit her face. It was as if the sun rose in that damp cottage.

"Itachi was my mother's student," she stroked him soothingly as he cried out from nightmares, "She trained him and wanted me to save him. I would have done the same." She stared out the window again, "My eye…it sees people. Itachi was too kind and gentle to be a ninja but he became one anyways. He desperately wanted his clan to make peace and persevere when they chose revenge. For that, they turned on him and separated him from his best friend Shisui. They were lovers once but that was shattered."

"You love him too," she gave me a piercing look; "You loved him with a sweetness foreign to an ANBU like me. I could never give him that sweetness in this state." She looked over her scared arms ruefully, "One day I'll learn but not now."

"I see," a realization struck me, "You're a Kodaina aren't you."

"Yes," she said, "A very young yet very powerful Kodaina. That teleportation I used. It was made from warping space rather than my usual way for dissolving into wind. I read your memories, Kisame Hoshigaki and I trust you to take care of Itachi and nothing more than that." She stood up and looked at the window again, "rain is like tears but the sun always shines afterward. Report me or duel me here, I don't care. Just take care of Itachi." I looked at her in wonderment. "You just saved my life and Itachi's and you expect me to kill you?"

"You past would seem to indicate that," she replied, "But I suppose even monsters can find a meaning in a dark world." I nodded and said no more. I would protect Itachi as she asked but from that day on we became friends. We were two people trapped in a dark world. At least in that stone cottage, we found something meaningful.

_**A/N: Finished! Yes this was a long chapter but I had a lot of ideas and decided on the events that happened in this chapter. Sorry about the ridiculously long wait but I promise that updates will be quicker since it is summer. Enslaved's update and the promised sequel of Revenge of the Heartbroken will be out shortly. R&R! **_


End file.
